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Innovation in the Safe Zone: A Study of Project-Based TBLT in Chinese Secondary EFL Classrooms

Guide to Education Innovation / 2025,5(4): 89-96 / 2025-09-10 11 5

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• Authors: Xinlei Zeng
• Information:

  Mianyang Teachers’ College, Mianyang

• Keywords:
  Project-Based Learning (PBL); Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT); Educational localization; Secondary English education; Hybrid pedagogy
• Abstract: This paper examined the distinctive Chinese adaptation of Project-Based Learning (PBL) within secondary English language education. It argues that what is often implemented as “PBL” in practice is, in reality, a hybrid methodology – termed “Project-Based Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT).” This approach strategically incorporates the framework of PBL while retaining the instructional core of TBLT. According to an analysis of the whole process of the initiation, process, and outcomes phases of Chinese English classroom practices, this paper reveals that teachers often employ a centrally designed, textbook-aligned driving question. The subsequent sub-tasks, though student-facing, are delicately scaffolded by the teacher, culminating in an academic output that ensures mastery of foundational knowledge. Hence, the project-based TBLT serves as a “safe” version of PBL that aligns with the constraints of the current educational system by maintaining teacher guidance and curricular alignment. It offers a comfort zone for both instructors and learners while providing an incremental step beyond passive rote learning. This paper concludes that project-based TBLT should be considered as a pragmatic and transitional phase. It posits that through deliberate improvements- such as posing authentic, cross-disciplinary driving questions and gradually raising student agency - this model can evolve into a more authentic form of PBL, ultimately better serving the goal of nurturing students’ holistic competencies within the Chinese context.
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.35534/gei.0504011
• Cite: Zeng, X. L. (2025). Innovation in the Safe Zone: A Study of Project-Based TBLT in Chinese Secondary EFL Classrooms. Guide to Education Innovation, 5(4), 89−96.